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Lemon Jelly (Ounce of gelatin cooked in one)
1/4 ounce of gelatin, cooked in one cup water, after it has been prepared as usual by soaking and draining 1 cup sugar 1 1/4 cups cold water 1/2 cup lemon juice A few grains salt Mix together the sugar, cold water, lemon juice, and salt, and strain into it the dissolved gelatin. Turn into molds wet with cold water. When cold, turn from molds and serve with whipped cream or lemon custard sauce.
A plain lemon gelatin, sharper and less sweet than a modern packet dessert, meant to be unmolded and served with cream. Two things need attention: the form of gelatin assumed here, and whether the quantity will hold a mold.
- "Prepared as usual by soaking and draining"Draining off excess water points to sheet or leaf gelatin, which is soaked limp in plenty of cold water and squeezed out before dissolving, though early granulated gelatins were also soaked before use. With modern granulated gelatin nothing is drained away: use the cup of water called for as the blooming and dissolving liquid, warming it gently until clear.
- A quarter ounce of gelatinAbout 7 g, which is one standard envelope of powdered gelatin, roughly 2 1/4 teaspoons.
- Setting strengthThe total liquid here is 2 3/4 cups, and one envelope is generally reckoned to set about 2 cups firmly. Expect a soft, barely self-supporting jelly; for a clean turn-out from a shaped mold, a second envelope is safer, or serve it set in glasses instead.
- Do not boil the gelatinHeat only until the granules have vanished and the liquid runs clear. Prolonged boiling weakens the set and gives a faintly gluey taste.
- Acid and clarityHalf a cup of lemon juice is a lot of acid, which also works against a firm set. Strain the juice as well as the gelatin if you want a clear jelly rather than a cloudy one.
- Wetting the moldsRinsing molds with cold water and leaving them wet is still the correct trick; it helps the jelly slip out. A brief dip of the mold in warm water finishes the job.
- Chilling"When cold" means thoroughly chilled, not merely cooled: four hours in the refrigerator, or overnight for a mold of any size.
- YieldRather more than the 2 3/4 cups of liquid once the sugar is dissolved, perhaps 3 cups or so; serves four to six.